Preface to the English Edition of the PamphletThe Proletarian Revolution and Kautsky the Renegade[2]

Written:Written not later than March 1920Published:First published in 1958 in the journalVoprosi Istorii KPSSNo. 4.

      Printed from the manuscript.Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      2nd English Printing,

      Progress Publishers,1971,

      Moscow,Volume 42,

      pages185b-186.Translated:Bernard IsaacsTranscription\Markup:D. WaltersPublic Domain:Lenin Internet Archive

      (2003).You may freely copy, distribute,
	display and perform this work; as well as make derivative and
	commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet
	Archive” as your source.•README

Preface to the English Edition

Thecomrades who intend to publish my pamphlet against
Kautsky in English, which has also been published in

German,[3]have asked me to write a preface to the English
edition.

Iwould prefer, in lieu of a short preface, to give a detailed analysis
of one of the writings of J. Ramsay Macdonald, who, as far as I know, is
one of the most influential and widely read of English writers of
practically the same Kautskyan trend. Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain
Macdonald’s bookParliament and

Revolution[4]which has short chapters on Soviet democracy and
Soviet suffrage,but the author’s Kautskyan point of view is quite clear from his article
“Socialist Review Outlook” published inThe Socialist Review,October-December 1919, of which he is the editor. Macdonald is not a
Marxist, and the Marxist-tinted opportunism characteristic of Kautsky is not
typical of England.

AsI have no time just now to give a detailed analysis of Macdonald’s
views, I shall confine myself to an attempt at briefly describing his views
as known to us from his political activities, from the newspaper of his
party (the “Independent” Labour Party-independent in word and fully
dependent on bourgeois prejudices in deed), from his magazine and. in
particular from the article just mentioned.

Ishall first quote some of the most characteristic passages from this
article:

Describingthe general political situation, Macdonald
   writes:

   “...Never was honest service and labour held in lower esteem”
   (p. 306).

   “.. Our ships of war continuing the starvation of women and children. We
   are in every mean and wicked conspiracy to subvert democracy in
   Europe. Though the State is tottering on the verge of bankruptcy, a
   Minister to gratify his personal vanity, and a small class of financiers
   to secure personal profit in the future, can add what will probably
   amount to 100,000,000 further burden upon the British taxpayer, for a
   Russian venture ...” (p. 307).

   “The storm in the teacup inside the Parliamentary Labour Party, because
   Mr. Neil Mac Lean remained seated during a theatrical display when the
   Prime Minister was being welcomed for bringing in his pocket from Paris
   one of the worst instruments that ever terminated a war, shows this same
   proneness?in the Party to be stampeded by trivial fears.”

   “The-Labour Party has to save itself from chastisement; it cannot allow
   handbills to be issued against its candidates, headed:

   ’The Labour Party condones an insult to our Gracious
   Sovereign.’”

 “Such a state of things,” declares brave Mr. Macdonald, “is not healthy;
   it contains no promise of great

			     reform....”[1]

Describingthe general political situation, Macdonald
   writes:

   “...Never was honest service and labour held in lower esteem”
   (p. 306).

   “.. Our ships of war continuing the starvation of women and children. We
   are in every mean and wicked conspiracy to subvert democracy in
   Europe. Though the State is tottering on the verge of bankruptcy, a
   Minister to gratify his personal vanity, and a small class of financiers
   to secure personal profit in the future, can add what will probably
   amount to 100,000,000 further burden upon the British taxpayer, for a
   Russian venture ...” (p. 307).

   “The storm in the teacup inside the Parliamentary Labour Party, because
   Mr. Neil Mac Lean remained seated during a theatrical display when the
   Prime Minister was being welcomed for bringing in his pocket from Paris
   one of the worst instruments that ever terminated a war, shows this same
   proneness?in the Party to be stampeded by trivial fears.”

   “The-Labour Party has to save itself from chastisement; it cannot allow
   handbills to be issued against its candidates, headed:

   ’The Labour Party condones an insult to our Gracious
   Sovereign.’”

 “Such a state of things,” declares brave Mr. Macdonald, “is not healthy;
   it contains no promise of great

			     reform....”[1]

[1]Herethe manuscript breaks off.—Ed.

[2]Lenindid not finish his preface. The pamphletThe Proletarian
Revolution and Kautsky the Renegadecame out in English at the end of
March 1920 without a preface.

[3]TheGerman pamphlet N. Lenin.Die Diktatur des Proletariats und der
Renegat Karl Kautskycame out at the end of December1919.

[4]Leninreceived Macdonald’s book later. It stands in his private library
with his marginal notes. Lenin specially marked those passages in the book
in which Macdonald tried to play down the class contradictions of
capitalist society. These marginal notes were published inLenin
MiscellanyXXIV, pp. 253-85.